About

$36,114

pledged of $35,000 goal

151

backers

Punctuate This! is a musical all about Punctuation set in the animated universe of Grammaropolis, a story-based approach to teaching grammar. We've already recorded the album, which includes songs for twelve punctuation marks. Now it's time for animation!

As an example of our work, here's a lyrics-only video for Sergeant Exclamation Mark! He's energetic! He gets really happy and really angry! There is no middle ground with him! (You may also know him by his undercover alias... Mr. Exclamation Point!)

We want to take all of that educational awesomeness and make it look as good as it sounds, just like we did for Nelson the Noun in his song, Noun Town:

The Grammaropolis PD is here to "serve and correct" as we build even more fun and excitement to the world of Grammaropolis, where grammar lives!

Those characters star in books, songs, videos, and interactive games. From the shady pronoun always trying to take the noun's place to the motherly conjunction who just wants everyone to get along, Grammaropolis achieves the seemingly impossible: we make LEARNING GRAMMAR FUN!

We're not exactly new to creating content! As we mentioned in the video above, we have an extensive background in education. Take a look at our currently available products:

Click here to see a few of them!

Grammaropolis combines the most successful lesson plans from the Mayor’s 6 years of teaching 7th grade grammar. He found that students were able to retain the information better if they could connect to it on an emotional level. Our story-based, character-driven approach was born from that insight and experience.

We create our educational content with students' different learning styles in mind. We never skimp on the information; instead we combine traditional textbook definitions and quiz-based assessment with our creative musical and story-based teaching approach.

Some of the steps for one of our vignettes.

Grammaropolis uses the mechanics of character and story (plot, motivation, setting, etc.) to teach grammar lessons. Rather than rely on abstract terms, we show an adverb being bossy, telling the other parts of speech where to go, when to leave, and how to move.

Students respond to story and character, so a video of an adverb policeman giving a verb a ticket for speeding and telling him to drive slowly provides a visual explanation of what it means for an adverb to “modify” a verb.

When students truly grasp the rules of grammar and the purpose of every part of speech, their writing begins to flourish, and they’re able to communicate more effectively—no matter the subject area.

Not only do students and teachers rave about the content in Grammaropolis; many reviewers seem to think we are on the right track as well. Here's just a brief sampling of what they have said:

We've also received several awards and TOP the "Best Of" lists routinely...

The curriculum development team at Grammaropolis includes both current and former Elementary & Secondary school teachers. In addition, our educational advisers include the Director of the Rice University Center for Education and the Director of Rice University's Center for Digital Learning and Scholarship.

We came to Kickstarter because we need help funding our next project. As detailed below, we plan to create an animated version of our Punctuate This! album (scheduled album release is March 4, 2017).

Each member of our team has been a long-time supporter of the platform, and we thought our project could easily find an audience of parents, teachers, and general English-language lovers here!

After a successful funding campaign, we will animate eleven songs, covering twelve different punctuation marks, from our new album, Punctuate This!, a musical all about.. you guessed it... punctuation.

Like an episode of Law & Order (an animated, kid-friendly, and educational one, of course), Punctuate This! tells the story of Slang’s arrest and trial for the use of improper grammar. Along the way, we meet the various members of the Grammaropolis PD: from the tender-hearted Officer Period to the list-loving Deputy Colon, from the no-drama Chief Comma to the sassy and sarcastic Court Reporter Quotation Marks.

You've already heard some of the music; all of the background tunes in our campaign video are from the album! Here's the first track in all its lyrical glory:

Track 01 - Punctuation.?!

With the animation complete, we can feature each song separately in new apps or on the website. If we exceed our funding goal, our stretch goals will allow us to animate the whole album as a single 45-minute episode. We'll even be able to offer the script and instrumental songs to Elementary school Music departments!

In exchange for generously backing our project, we have several perk levels offering a variety of goodies! Please leave your thoughts in our comments section of this campaign if you have any questions! You can also reach out by email to info@grammaropolis.com.

STRETCH GOALS!

Reaching our initial goal makes it possible for us to animate 11 of the songs from Punctuate This!, but if we hit our stretch goals, we'll be able to provide even more amazing and engaging content to students and teachers. Here's what our goals look like:

After we successfully crowdfund this project, we expect to immediately get started on the following timeline to complete the work and deliver our content to you!

Risks and challenges

Because we've done animation before, we've got a pretty good handle on what to expect. That said, this is a labor of love, and the Mayor is a stickler for quality, so there is a chance that the animation takes longer than anticipated.

We'll keep you posted on our progress, of course, so you'll never be in the dark about where things stand.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $25 or more
About $25

SWORN OFFICER: Grammaropolis PD T-Shirt

Show the world that you vow to SERVE & CORRECT with this custom tee! We will contact you with a survey for sizing information after our campaign ends.
- Includes digital download of the Punctuate This! album.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge US$ 40 or more
About US$ 40

CYBER DIVISION: Digital Combo Pack

Enjoy the wonder of character-based songs and animation. Includes the Grammaropolis album and videos for the parts of speech in addition to our upcoming Punctuate This! content. EARLY RELEASE of Punctuate This! album on Feb 4 EXCLUSIVE for our backers.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge US$ 60 or more
About US$ 60

CLASSROOM CAPTAIN: 1-Year Subscription

Be the class HERO by claiming this 1-year subscription to the Grammaropolis school website for up to 35 students. Songs, books, videos, games, & quizzes, with individual student logins and performance tracking.
- Also includes digital download of Punctuate This! album and animation.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $75 or more
About $75

MAJOR HARD COPY: Physical Combo Pack

Looking for something you can have and hold? Includes CD and DVD of the Grammaropolis album and videos for the parts of speech in addition to CD and DVD our upcoming Punctuate This! content. EARLY RELEASE of Punctuate This! album on Feb 4 EXCLUSIVE for our backers.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $250 or more
About $250

SENTENCE DIAGRAM Art Print

Is there a book that you just love? The Mayor will diagram a sentence of your choice and have it printed on high-quality art paper -- dimensions roughly 24x36. Also makes a great holiday gift for the language lover in your life. (That was alliteration.)
- Also Includes Perks from the Cyber Division Level

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge US$ 500 or more
About US$ 500

CAMPUS CHIEF: School Site License

Give the gift of a 1-year site license to Grammaropolis (up to 500 students) to the school of your choice. Songs, books, videos, games, & quizzes, with individual student logins and performance tracking.
- Also includes Perks from the Cyber Division & Sworn Officer Levels

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge US$ 2,000 or more
About US$ 2,000

HONORED DIGNITARY: Mayor School Visit

The Mayor of Grammaropolis will visit your school in-character and lead a workshop for your classroom. Travel is restricted to certain states, so please email info@grammaropolis.com for details before claiming this tier.
- Also includes Perks from the Campus Chief and Cyber Division levels.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge US$ 3,500 or more
About US$ 3,500

COMMISSIONER: Author Reading & Workshops

A day of writing workshops with an author reading to boot! This entire day would be led by Coert Voorhees, an educator, accomplished YA author, and our Mayor! Please email info@grammaropolis.com for details before claiming this tier.

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $10,000
About $10,000

COMMISSIONER CAMEO: You, animated!

For the grammar geek who has everything. Give the animated version of yourself a role in a Punctuate This! music video. Take it from the Mayor: having an animated version of yourself is life-changing!
- Includes a signed photo-op of Animated You and Animated Mayor
- Also includes Perks from the Campus Chief and Cyber Division levels.